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The Home Secretary of the United Kingdom is in effect a Minister of the Interior. The present incumbent of this office is Teresa May. She will introduce legislation which will ban people and groups who actively promote intolerance. It sounds odd to me and even odder when the Prime Minister claims that we have been a passively tolerant society for too long.

It is in the nature of tolerance to be passive; active tolerance is a concept that I do not understand and would be glad if someone can explain it. It now seems that we will have laws that will make it an offence to be intolerant. That means we will not tolerate intolerance.

There are more than enough laws to prevent the dissemination of hated of ethnic groups or people of a particular sexuality. Law requiring people and groups to be tolerant sounds is the first step to a highly intolerant society.

I think asking “do we still have discrimination” misses Rob’s point. If we want a fair society we should be tolerant of others’ views but, in my view, a fair society should not criminalise someone who takes a moral or ethical stand or simply does not like any individual or group and says so.

Theoretically, in future, we might be imprisoning newspaper editors who consistently demonise Putin or Russians. Or what about peadophiles? Will we not be allowed to speak out against them.

What about a gay islamic terrorist? (I understand there are many) What will be allowed to say about him/her?

In my view repression of free speech only leads to worse violence and undermining of a free society